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GOLD MEDAL SPOTLIGHT

Gold Medal Gift Guide

Gold Medal Gift Guide

Surely you know somebody who loves outdoor cooking who deserves a gift for the holidays, birthday, anniversary, or just for being wonderful. There he is, right in the mirror! Here are our selections of best ideas, all Pitmaster Award winners or Gold Medalist, listed by price.

Masterbuilt MPS 340/G ThermoTemp XL Propane Smoker

The First Propane Smoker With A Thermostat Makes This Baby Foolproof

Set ThermoTemp's dial from 175° to 350°F and the thermostat inside will adjust the burner just like an indoor kitchen oven. All you need to do is add wood to the tray above the burner to start smokin'.

If you have a Weber Kettle, you need the Slow 'N' Sear

The Good-One Is A Superb Grill And A Superb Smoker All In One

The Good-One Open Range is a charcoal grill with an offset smoke chamber attached. It is dramatically different from a traditional offset smoker. The grill sits low in front and doubles as a firebox for the smoke chamber which is spliced on above and behind so it can work like a horizontal offset smoker only better. By placing the heat source behind and under the smokebox instead of off to the side, Open Range produces even temperature from left to right, something almost impossible to achieve with a standard barrel shaped offset.

G&F Suede Welder's Gloves

Heat Resistant Gloves With Extra Long Sleeves Hold The Hot Stuff

If you're using oven mitts at the grill, it's time to trade up. Say hello to these suede welder's gloves. They're heat resistant enough to handle hot grill grates, and flexible enough to handle tongs. The extra long sleeves even let you reach deep into the firebox to move hot logs without getting burned. Our Fave.

Is This Superb Charcoal Grill A Kamado Killer?

The PK-360, with 360 square inches of cooking space, this rust free, cast aluminum charcoal grill is durable and easy to use. Four-way venting means it's easy to set up for two zone cooking with more control than single vent Kamado grills. It is much easier to set up for 2-zone cooking than any round kamado. Beautifully designed and completely portable. Meathead says it is his preferrred grill.

GrillGrates Take Gas Grills To The Infrared Zone

GrillGrates(TM) amplify heat, prevent flareups, make flipping foods easier, keep small foods from committing suicide, kill hotspots, are easier to clean, flip over to make a fine griddle, and can be easily removed and moved from one grill to another. You can even throw wood chips, pellets, or sawdust between the rails and deliver a quick burst of smoke to whatever is above. Every gas grill needs them.

The Pit Barrel Cooker May Be Too Easy

The PBC has a rabid cult following for good reason. It is absolutely positively without a doubt the best bargain on a smoker in the world. Period. This baby will cook circles around the cheap offset sideways barrel smokers in the hardware stores because temperature control is so much easier. Best of all, it is only $299 delivered to your door!

Our Favorite Backyard Smoker

The amazing Karubecue is the most innovative smoker in the world. The quality of meat from this machine is astonishing. At its crux is a patented firebox that burns logs above the cooking chamber and sucks heat and extremely clean blue smoke into the thermostat controlled oven. It is our favorite smoker, period.

Smoked Chocolate Chips Amp Up Any Dessert

Take your desserts over the top with this recipe for cold smoking chocolate chips at home.

Nothing says “I love you but not enough to put in much effort” than store bought chocolates at Valentine’s Day.

This year, show your loved ones how much you truly care by surprising them with some homemade sweets featuring cold smoked chocolate chips!

Adding a touch of BBQ smoke to chocolate chips is a relatively easy way to introduce an unexpected layer of flavor to our Lusty Chocolate Truffles recipe as well as cookies, s'mores, ice cream, and more. The key to success is to create just enough heat in the grill to create a steady stream of smoke while keeping the chocolate chips extra cool thanks to a layer of ice below the dish containing the chocolate. Here's our how-to:

Ingredients

1 12-ounce bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method

1) Prep. Fill a 9-inch round cake pan with ice. Spread the chocolate chips out evenly across the bottom of a glass pie plate.

2) Fire up. Heat 4-6 charcoal briquets. Place the briquets on one end of the charcoal grill’s charcoal grate. Top the briquets with 2 small chunks of mild smoking wood such as maple, cherry, or apple. Allow the wood to begin smoking.

3) Cook. Set the ice filled cake pan on the grill’s main cooking grate as far from the charcoal and wood as possible. Top the cake pan with the chocolate chip filled pie plate. Place the lid on the grill. Open the top vent fully and position it directly above the chocolate chips to force the smoke over and around them.

4) Allow the chocolate chips to smoke for 30 minutes for a mild smoke flavor or 45 minutes for a stronger flavor. Remove chips from the grill and store them in an airtight container until ready to use. Note that the smoke flavor will mellow over time so storing them for several days before using is ideal.

5) Serve. Once the smoked chocolate chips have had time to mellow, use them in cookies, cakes, candies, and other desserts.

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt."Charles M. Schultz

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Many merchants pay us a small referral fee when you click our links and purchase from them. On Amazon it works on everything from grills to diapers, they never tell us what you bought, and it has zero impact on the price you pay, but has a major impact on our ability to improve this site! And remember, we only recommend products we love. If you like AmazingRibs.com, please save this link and use it every time you go to Amazonhttps://tinyurl.com/amazingribs

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